Goodness, have I been pumped about the play of Cleveland Cavaliers big Jarrett Allen this season. Last season, it was a big deal when the Cavaliers acquired Allen via part of the James Harden trade from the Brooklyn Nets, and after his new five-year, $100 million contract this past offseason, he’s taken it to another level this season.
Allen has had career-bests in points and rebounds per game at 17.3 and 11.3, and has tacked on 1.3 blocks per contest. He’s currently second in the league in field goal shooting clip among qualified players at 71.4 percent as well, per Basketball Reference.
We know that Allen is not going to be getting his production from the perimeter, but he’s further cemented himself as one of the game’s best finishers, and his improvements with his low-post game/footwork and him getting better as an occasional driver has been crucial.
On the defensive end, him and Evan Mobley, along with other Cavs to some degree, have played into Cleveland currently having the league’s third-best defensive rating, too.
In any case, while we have often expressed how Allen has been such an integral player for Cleveland, and he had been putting up numbers in games since his return from illness, his impact has continued to show of late. Carrying that forward, in his past five outings, he’s had 19.0 points on 76.1 percent shooting, to go with 10.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game.
Cavs: Allen just keeps churning out big-time performances.
Allen has been dynamite, and despite a few opponents, such as the Miami Heat (sans Bam Adebayo, most notably) and Chicago Bulls (regarding perimeter players) being shorthanded in recent games, I don’t discount what Jarrett has been doing.
Regardless of Richaun Holmes being out in that one, Allen did what he’s been able to do consistently throughout the season, and dominated on the interior as a finisher, and helped ignite runs. He was 5-of-8 from the field, and was 9-of-10 from the foul line as well, while having 11 rebounds, three blocks and two steals.
Plus, similarly to when Allen faced off against the Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert on Dec. 5 in a close loss, the Fro more than held his own in some matchups even against Karl-Anthony Towns in Cleveland’s big win on Friday at the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota is not exactly a terror defensively, but Towns is no slouch in relation to rim protection, and Allen and company made him work at the other end, even with the production always going to be there from him.
Anyway, in that game, Allen had 21 points on his 9-of-11 shooting, and had yet another double-double with 10 boards, and added two blocks in 27 minutes. Now, he did have four fouls, which is atypical; Cleveland was dominant in that one, however.
And even with Adebayo out, among others, it’s been great to see Allen dominate when the possibilities are there inside, no matter who’s out there from the opposition, in the last game involving the Heat.
Credit Miami for their efforts, and P.J. Tucker had a career-best 23 points in that one, but Allen was hyper-efficient as always on Monday, and helped steady the Cavaliers with 17 points on 6-of-6 shooting, and 5-of-5 from the line. Kevin Love in the second half had all of his 23 points (including five threes) then as well, which was crucial, as a side note, though.
Moreover, it’s just been refreshing to see how Allen has continued to add to his All-Star case this season for the Cavaliers, and he’s constantly answered the bell as an imposing lob threat, roller and key interior piece for Cleveland. His defensive efforts also have been on display over and over as a rim protector and shot alterer as well, similarly to Mobley, and that’s invaluable.
It’s been meaningful to see Allen seemingly come into his own as one of the leaders for this Cavs team, too. That will only be more prevalent as the 23-year-old puts up more big-time performances, like these recent ones and as he’s had often throughout the season.